Intelligent Product Solutions (IPS) Partners with Schoolwide to Develop First Web-based Curriculum Resource Solution for K–8 Teachers

HAUPPAUGE and HOLBROOK, New York, April 10, 2018 -- Intelligent Product Solutions (IPS), a leading product design and development firm, today announced its partnership with Schoolwide to develop a web-based curriculum solution that provides educators (K–8) with a searchable online database of standards-aligned curriculum resources. Schoolwide’s Fundamentals Unlimited provides teachers with online access to curriculum, featuring workshop-model-ready lessons and resources in reading, writing, and grammar all in one place.

With its web-based user interface, the curriculum may be accessed via an array of devices, including iPads and mobile devices, providing teachers with a full year of lesson plans, eBooks, and digital texts. Fundamentals Unlimited delivers a breadth of resources, including Interactive Read-Aloud Lessons, Shared Reading Lessons, Mini-Lessons, Assessments, Graphic Organizers, Charts, and Student Forms. Each unit of study has a complete set of lessons, a link to core standards, as well as learning assessments and a customizable library of resources. 

“Our Fundamentals Unlimited solution provides teachers with easy online access to a breadth of curriculum resources,” said Jess Cohen, CEO, Schoolwide. “This was a mammoth project, converting our existing printed curriculum into a new and dynamic digital solution that not only makes it easy for teachers to search and use our curriculum, but also allows them to customize their use of the resources to support truly personalized, student-centered learning and differentiated instruction.” 

Ladi Davies, Schoolwide’s Vice President of Educational Solutions, added, “IPS was a fantastic software development partner because of its expertise in a full range of software product design and its speed—the entire solution was developed in five months, enabling us to get this software solution to schools and teachers in time for the new school year.”    

According to Danny Aponte, Senior Director of Software Engineering and IT for Intelligent Product Solutions, “As part of the software development effort for Schoolwide, we created a customized CMS (Content Management System) to make it easy for Schoolwide editors to convert their paper curriculum into a digital format for Fundamentals Unlimited. Additionally, the advanced features built into Fundamentals Unlimited allow teachers to leverage the huge amount of content that Schoolwide offers in their curriculum in a way that’s quick and easy and fits into their normal day-to-day activities. Our team worked seamlessly with Schoolwide at an incredible pace to develop this solution.”

Already, Schoolwide’s new Fundamentals Unlimited curriculum resource solution is being used by teachers and schools in more than 15 states, including New York, Connecticut, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Missouri, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Washington, Wisconsin, Texas, Florida, Minnesota, Illinois, and North Carolina. 

According to Adam Sparks, Principal of Sandra Cisneros Elementary School (Chicago, IL), “As the experts in their classrooms, our teachers thrive on the structured autonomy that Fundamentals Unlimited provides them. From narrowed formative assessment tools to shared summative assessments, Fundamentals Unlimited provides our teachers with the tools they need to make meaningful and data-driven decisions that pay major dividends on students' growth as readers, writers, and speakers. Students benefit from having authentic texts literally at their fingertips. Fundamentals Unlimited brings reading, writing, and grammar to the center of our students' academic experience, one that is filled with joyfully chosen texts and student-centered workshops.”

On Long Island, NY, Schoolwide’s Fundamental Unlimited is being used by the Plainview-Old Bethpage School District for grades K–8. Teachers are using Fundamentals Unlimited, which applies research-based best practices in literacy instruction, to differentiate instruction and to find the right resources to meet students’ needs.

“I use Fundamentals Unlimited with my ELA class on a daily basis. It allows me access to resources that meet my students’ diverse needs,” said teacher Marty McCabe at Howard B. Mattlin Middle School in Plainview-Old Bethpage Central School District. “I cannot say enough positive things about how easy it is to implement and use.”

About IPS

IPS, a subsidiary of Forward Industries (NASDAQ:FORD), is a global product design and development company that is headquartered in New York, with an office in London. IPS offers expert product design and engineering services, including Internet of Things and wearable technology solutions. IPS’s fully-integrated capabilities include industrial design, electrical, mechanical, and systems engineering, optical engineering, application level software and low-level firmware engineering, user experience/interface design (UX/UI), program management, and marketing. Its clients are among the leading brands in consumer electronics, medical devices, enterprise and security solution providers, and Internet of Things(IoT) connected solutions, including Google, Physio Control, Motorola, and Charity Water. To learn more about IPS, visit www.intelligentproduct.solutions or contact [email protected] or @IPSdesigners.

About Schoolwide

Schoolwide’s mission is to improve the performance of students by providing teachers with effective tools. It was founded by reading teacher Robin Cohen and her two sons, who worked to put children’s books into the hands and homes of disadvantaged children at a low cost via Student-Run Bookstores. Since its founding, Schoolwide, Inc. has evolved and is now a leading curriculum developer, publisher, and professional development provider for schools nationwide.

For more media information, contact:

Lisa Hendrickson/LCH Communications for IPS

516-767-8390

[email protected]